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Mayor Lee announces $1.5M Benioff donation, $800K city match and more funds to expand rent subsidies for homeless families
Summary
Mayor Ed Lee and Human Services Agency staff told the Board of Supervisors the city will expand rental subsidy vouchers and move‑in assistance for homeless families with a $1.5 million private contribution from Lynn and Mark Benioff, an $800,000 mayoral match and additional budget money, expected to fund roughly 160 short‑term rental subsidies.
During a scheduled question period at the San Francisco Board of Supervisors meeting, Mayor Ed Lee and City officials outlined steps the city will take to respond to an uptick in family homelessness and to expand rental subsidies and supportive services for families.
Mayor Lee said his office has directed the Human Services Agency (HSA) to work with the San Francisco Housing Authority and other partners to immediately identify families in the shelter system and place them into vacant public housing units where feasible. The mayor and staff also described a new public‑private funding package intended to expand short‑term rental subsidies and help families move into housing.
Key details provided by the mayor and Human Services Agency during the meeting:
• Private gift and city matching funds: Mayor Lee announced that Lynn and Mark Benioff (founders of Salesforce) offered a private contribution of $1.5 million to a new program of rent subsidies and move‑in assistance for homeless families. The mayor said the city would match that private gift with $800,000 from the mayor’s homeless fund.
• Additional city budget: Mayor Lee said the city will add approximately $1.1 million in the 2012–13 budget to expand the program, and staff estimated that the combined funds would finance roughly 160 rent subsidies (the mayor described the program’s combined resources as enabling “approximately 160 rent subsidies”).
• Program design: HSA will fund rent subsidy vouchers and move‑in grants that cover security deposits, first month’s rent and basic furniture. HSA staff said the intent is to couple the subsidies with post‑placement supportive case management provided by community partners such as Compass Family Services and others that work with families on shelter waiting lists.
• Immediate placements: The mayor told supervisors that HSA and the Housing Authority were already identifying homeless families in shelters and public‑housing waiting lists and would start processing placements immediately where units are available.
Supervisor questions and context: Several supervisors pressed the mayor about scale and program sustainability as the board discussed a sharp rise in family homelessness in San Francisco (the board cited an increase in families on emergency shelter waiting lists and in self‑identified homeless students enrolled in the school district). Mayor Lee framed the initiative as a short‑term program to move families quickly out of shelter and into housing while city staff and community groups work on longer‑term solutions.
What the city said it would do next: Mayor Lee’s office and HSA said they would begin placements as units and cases are identified, expand the pilot with the private‑public funds, and include the program in the mayor’s upcoming 2012–13 budget. City and nonprofit staff said they plan to monitor placements and provide ongoing case management and services to help families achieve stable housing.
No ordinance or vote was taken at the hearing; the mayor presented the commitments as administrative and budget‑level actions that require follow‑up reporting during the budget process.
